In Colorado, there is a fatal overdose every nine hours and 36 minutes. 174 people died of overdose just in the City and County of Denver in 2016. 129 died in 2015. And, as you may remember, the HRAC lost 6 participants to overdose over a two week period in January of this year. 87% of the overdoses reported reversed by participants of the HRAC occurred in public or semi-public spaces.
Supervised use sites bridge the gap between people who inject drugs and public health interventions that are proven to reduce the spread of HIV and viral hepatitis and also prevent fatal overdoses. In fact, of 102 SIFs currently operating around the globe, in 63 cities, and not one has reported a single fatal overdose on its premises.

How can you help?

As Executive director Lisa Raville explains “Really, this is a larger community effort: We want to make sure people are safer and healthier. The problem is, we are able to give them all the tools to inject drugs safely except the place to do it safely, and that means it is usually rushed and hurried and in an alley or a public bathroom. We know that business owners aren’t trying to be bathroom monitors. This would take [injection sites] out of the public sphere and [put them] where [they are] supposed to be – in a medical facility. It is a medical issue and a public-health issue.”

A supervised use site in Denver is a community initiative and it depends on community support.

Sign our pledge to support an evidence-based intervention to prevent disease and death in a manner that meets the needs of our citizens and our community’s businesses.

Support the opening of a supervised use site in Denver for a healthier and safer community. We ask Denver to take all necessary steps to authorize and establish supervised injection facilities as a public health intervention to reduce overdose deaths, HIV and viral hepatitis transmission, increase public safety, while promoting access to drug dependency treatment and other supportive care.